Charlemagne
and Emperor Sigismund: portrait by Albrecht Durer, 1513
The famous Charlemagne portrait is part of a double panel, combined with Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg. Both were commissioned for the City Hall (Rathaus) of
Nurnberg, commemorating the return of the regalia to Nurnberg under the fifteenth-century
emperor. This paring shows Durer's intent to link Charlemagne with his successors
in the Holy Roman Empire. See a discussion of this portrait at the great Hungarian
'Web Gallery of Art' site here.
Now at Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Nurnberg.